Kawasaki is probably the only Japanese bike maker that has kept the entry level sportbike fire burning. Ninja 250 has been a long-running model and has seen significant updates in terms of tech, variants and even a capacity upgrade to 300cc.

And now, Kawasaki has upped the game yet again with the new Ninja 400. The big K claims that it comes with an all-new engine nestled in an all-new frame, and boy those styling bits!

Peak power from this 399cc parallel twin engine stands at around 45 bhp that comes in at a lofty 10,000 rpm to be ready for a screaming exhaust note as you rev up to glory. And then there’s 28 lb-ft (38 Nm) built up at 8000 revs.

A new steel trellis frame uses the engine as a stressed member and keeps check on the weight, the 168 kg figure down by a good 6 kg compared to Ninja 300.

Kawasaki says it has bettered performance throughout the rev range, with improved low-down torque and smooth throttle response, while being rider-friendly. Clutch action is made 20% lighter by an assist-and-slipper clutch.

Now to the styling – the bike gets tasty bits inspired by the Ninja H2, with ‘chin-spoilers’ just below the twin LED headlamps, which is the highlight of this package. Now, who wouldn’t want to have a slice of the H2 at a fraction of the price?

Inevitably, the Ninja 400 will reach Indian shores and looking at Kawasaki’s efforts to ramp up its operations in India since it went solo, expect it to happen sooner than expected. While it will slot below the naked Z650 in the order, expect it to come with a sub-5 Lakh sticker price. Ummmm, INR 4.5 lakh ex-showroom should be a good speculative spark-off…

Specifications –

Displacement: 399 cc

Bore & stroke: 70.0 mm × 51.8 mm

Power: 45hp @ 10,000rpm

Torque: 28lbft (38 Nm) @ 8,000rpm

Dimensions: 1990 × 710 × 1120 mm

Seat height: 785 mm

Kerb weight: 168kg

Tank: 14 litres

Contributing Author : Vijayendra Vikram Singh

He started his writing career with OVERDRIVE, India’s premier automobile magazine in 2005 as a trainee correspondent. His next stint was with Oncars India (online), the Indian arm of America’s Oncars.com, where he was responsible for the website content and also doing video reviews of cars. Then came TopGear Malaysia where he served as the Associate Editor and also contributed to TopGear.com and ON THE ROAD Magazine.

Although he loves cars, the big ones, he remain a biker at heart and love to ride to the horizon and alone most of the time. He has also done some really long trips across India on both superbikes as well as domestic small capacity bikes. Apart from that, he has an eye for latest gadgets, blockbusters and a never ending fetish for clothes.